Location, Area & Administration of Jhunjhunu:
Jhunjhunu lies between 27° 38′ & 28° 31′ north latitude and 75° 02′ and 76° 06′ east longitude. It is surrounded by Churu district on the northwestern side Hissar and Mahendragarh district of Haryana State in the northeastern part and by Sikar district in the west, south and south eastern part.
The Total geographical area of the district is 2928 square Kms which is divided into 8 tehsils namely Jhunjhunu, Malsisar, Buhana, Udaipurwati, Nawalgarh, Khetri, Chirawa, Surajgarh.
History of Jhunjhunu:
Ancient History of Jhunjhunu, forms part of Indian mythology, with an anecdote that Pandwas, the heroes of the Mahabharata took bath and bathed their weapons in the Surya Kund, Lohargal.
It is said that, it was ruled over by the Chauhan Dynasty in the Vikram era 1045, and Sidhraj was a renowned king. In the year 1450 Mohammed Khan & his son Samas khan defeated the Chauhans and conquered Jhunjhunu.
Mohammed khan was first Nawab of Jhunjhunu. In 1459, his son Samas khan ascended the throne and . Jhunjhunu was ruled over by of the following Nawabs in succession:
Rulers of Jhunjhunu:
- Mohammed Khan
- First Nawab of Jhunjhunu
- Samas Khan
- Ascended throne in 1459
- Founded the village Samaspur and got Samas Talab constructed
- Fateh Khan
- Mubark Shah
- Kamal Khan
- Bheekam Khan
- Mohabat Khan
- Khijar Khan
- Bahadur Khan
- Samas Khan Sani
- Sultan khan
- Vahid Khan
- Saad Khan
- Fazal Khan
- Rohilla Khan
- Last Nawab of Jhunjhun
- Shardul Singh, diwan of Rohilla Khan, occupied jhunjhunu, after the death of Rohilla Khan in 1730.
Shardul Singh
- Shardul Singh was as brave as his ancestor Rao Shekha ji.
- He ruled for twelve years. After his death the estate was divided equally among his five sons. The administration by his five sons was cumulatively known as “Panchpana”.
- Their descendants continued to rule over it till Indian Independence in 1947.
Fairs & Festivals of Jhunjhunu:
Rani Sati Fair:
The Rani Sati Mela in Jhunjhunu which is in the northern part of Shekhawati, attracts thousands of pilgrims and tourists from all over the globe. The fair is held at The Rani Sati Temple on Bhado Amavasya which means no-moon day.
Ramdevji Fair:
This fair is held at Nawalgarh city of Rajasthan. Named after Baba Ramdev, he was believed to have magical powers and is believed that he is an embodiment of lord Krishna. Respected by both the Hindus and Muslims this fair is celebrated in the honor of death anniversary of Baba Ramdev.
Geography of Jhunjhunu:
Physiographically, the district is a mass of rolling sand dunes, hillocks and low lying mounds in its western part. The south eastern part, has off shoots of Aravalli range of hills, which extend from south of Udaipurwati tehsil and continue up to Khetri & Singhana following an almost NE-SW trend. The average elevation is 300-450 mt. above MSL with highest peak near Lohagarh at 1051 mts. above MSL.
Shifting sands, active dunes and soil erosion are hallmark of western and central part of the district. The inland drainage is related to Katli river system. There are four major streams in the district namely Dohau, Chandrawati, Udaipur-Lohagarh ki Nadi & Sukh Nadi.
- River katli originated from Khadela hill sides of Shrimadhopur Tehsil. Sikar and enters near south west of Udaipurwati tehsil running towards north – west direction and ultimately disappears in the sandy tracks of the Churu District. This river, however, divides the district almost into two parts.
- Similarly Dohan River also originates from Shrimadhopur hills and flows to north – eastern direction passing through some eastern part and ultimately disappears in sandy tracks of Mahendragarh district of Haryana.
- There is no lake in the district however small tanks are in existence in some areas. There are only four tanks used for irrigation purposes.
Natural Resources/ Minerals of Jhunjhunu:
Jhunjhunu is fairly endowed with various minerals whose industrial use has immensely contributed to the economy of the district. Of these, the most important is the copper belt of Khetri from which mining has been carried out since time immemorial. The different minerals found in the district can be enlisted as under:-
Copper-Gold-Silver
- Out of the three copper producing belts of India, the Khetri copper belt has a special importance due to the ancient workings and its configuration.
- The Khetri Copper belt extends for a strike length of 80 kms. from Raghunathgarh in South to Singhana in North.
- The off-shoots and parallel mineralised zones have been identified around Deoru, Banswas, Dhola Mala etc.
Iron
- Iron ore in the form of a mixture of hematite and magnetite occurs near Jaonda where about 0.25 M.T. of reserves with 65% to 70% Fe have been estimated.
- Another 0.38 M.T. reserves with 55% – 65% Fe have been reported from Soir Zamalpura area. Minor occurrences have been also reported between Rajpur and J aintapura and Kali Pahari area.
Cobalt
- G.S.I. has reported presence of Cobalt associated with pyrrhotite in Akwali – Babai section of Khetri Copper bolt. The ore is a mixture of Cobaltite and Danite with about 2.83% Co content.
Limestone
- Limestone is reported from Khiror-Basawa-Parasrampura area, teh. Nawalgarh,
- It occurs beneath a thick soil cover and only intermittent exposures are found.
- Small occurrences of limestone are also reported in the form of small bands and pockets around Paprna, Meena Ki Dhani etc.
FIuorite
- A small occurrence of fluorite is located near village Chhapoli, Teh. Udaipurwati. This prospect was worked by R.S.M.D.C. previously, though no mining activity is being carried out now.
Quartz – Feldspar
- Minor occurrences of quartz-feldspar have been reported from localities in teh.Khetri and teh. Udaipurwati. .
Clays-Red Ochre
- A few leases for clays and red ochre are existing in the district near Gudha, Ponkh, Girawadi, Udaipurwati, Mehrana etc.
Soapstone – Pyrophyllite
- Soapstone-pyrophyllite occurrences have been reported from Khoh, Guda, Mehrana etc. of teh. Udaipurwati and Khetri.
Calcite
- Calcite is being mined in minor quantities around villages Dada, Bansiyal, Badalwas etc. of teh. Khetri.
Granite
- Granites belonging to the Erinpura as well as Malani Igneous suite are exposed intermittently in the district.
- The prominent exposures are of Nand, Rizhani, Maragsar, Makhar, Rasoda & Jhunjhunu of teh.
- Jhunjhunu and Hukumpura Bamlawas, teh. Udaipurwati.
- The granite of the district is light to dark grey pink and red.
- The red granite of Makhar is also being exported.
Marble
- Marble occurrences are reported from Papurna, Meena Ki Dhani, Bhagwatwala ki Dhani etc. of teh. Khetri. The marble is grey, medium to coarse grained, hard and compact.
Population:
- According to the 2011 census, Jhunjhunu district has a population of 21,39,658.
- The district has a population density of 361 inhabitants per square kilometer.
- Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 11.81%.
- Jhunjhunun has a sex ratio of 950 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 74.72%.